A Prolonged Love
by CatandKaraForever
Summary: Sequel to An Everlasting Love. Allea and Serana's adventures continue.
1. Chapter 1: Allea's Point of View

**An Prolonged Love**

 **Fandom: Elder Scrolls Series (Skyrim with DLCs)**

 **Author: CatandKaraForever**

 **Rating: T**

 **Genres: Romance, Adventure, Action, Fantasy**

 _ **Allea's Point of View:**_

I stood on the balcony, looking out into the sun as it rose over the newly constructed aboveground sections of my Hold, the town we called Diamond City, from the palace that had been built as an entranceway to the main city underground. It'd been six months since we defeated the Khazad at what we'd started calling the Battle of Janwen. Arissa and the other members of the group besides Serana and I all had official positions throughout my Hold, in reward for their service in besting the Khazad. Sasha and the other Sirens from Pazarath had returned to the stronghold, as they were still part of the clan there and had been ordered to help rather than being part of the prophecy. Melodia served as a messenger when I needed a message sent to Pazarath, as she was a Siren and therefore had nigh complete access to the fort. Inigo served as a bodyguard and swordsmanship instructor. Vilja was an alchemist, running a shop down in the underground portions. Arissa worked as a thief and infiltrator, stealing items on my behalf if a conflict rose or something of that like. She also had been hired as an assassin, though we hadn't needed her in that function yet. I felt Serana's arms wrap around me, and she whispered in my ear.

"What are you doing up so early?"

"Couldn't sleep," I admitted, "Figured I'd come out here catch some of the sights."

She chuckled, and I turned around, kissing her softly. She pulled back, brushing a strand of hair out of my eyes to stare at me.

"You're so beautiful," she said with a smile, "How did I ever get so lucky to have you in my life?"

I smiled wide, "I'm lucky to have you too."

I leaned in, kissing her again. We broke apart after a moment and she joined me in looking out over the city.

"I..Wanted to ask you something?"

"What is it?"

"As beautiful as Skyrim is," she began, "I want to go somewhere new."

"Alright, where? I can start making diplomatic arrangements for us," I said, figuring she meant another province.

"I want to see if there's more out there, beyond Tamriel."

I pursed my lips in contemplation before nodding.

"There has to be," I admitted, "As big as Tamriel is, it's unlikely that there's not anything else. Are you sure you want to leave Tamriel? It could be dangerous."

"What do we do that's NOT dangerous?"

"Fair enough," I conceded, "We should make a plan for starting the voyage."

She nodded.

"Before we do that we should see if any of the other provinces wish to send anyone with us," she suggested, "Perhaps a cartographer from each province?'

I nodded in agreement.

"I'll try to arrange a meeting," I told her, "I'll go see Ulfric and talk to him about attending, then when I get back we'll find some messengers and we'll get rulers of the other provinces to meet with us."

She nodded.

"Do you want me to come with you?"

"I think for the sake of time you should oversee preparation of the ship, maybe start working on a travel plan with El-Lee and oversee the preparations."

She nodded.

I approached the palace, the guards giving me suspicious looks. Though I'd cleared up the mess from when I was turned into a Believer, they were still distrustful of me.

"Relax," I told them, "I just need to speak with High King Stormcloak."

"The last time you said that you slaughtered a dozen of us," one of them pointed out.

"Are you going to block my entry?"

"I ought to," the guard said, "But no. The High King has ordered that you be treated as if the incident never occurred. Count yourself lucky you have a friend in him."

I nodded gratefully, pushing open the door. I approached Ulfric, kneeling before him.

"Greetings," he said, "You needn't bow to me."

I rose to my feet, looking him in the eye.

"What brings you here?"

"You know that I am a Jarl of Skyrim," I started, "I would like to request your presence at an event next week."

"What event?"

"I'm planning something," I told him, "One week from tonight. It's important."

"What are you planning?"

"That's complicated. I'd rather only explain it to the group at the event if that's alright."

He nodded.

"Very well," he said, "Shall I bring my own security?"

I shrugged.

"If you'd like," I said, "Diamond City guards will be on hand for the event, and with the presence of one if not two Dovahkiin, the odds are good that it'll be safe. However I expect other dignitaries will bring their own security, and if you desire to bring your own they will not be turned away."

He nodded again.

"Understood."


	2. Chapter 2: Serana's Point of View

**An Prolonged Love**

 **Fandom: Elder Scrolls Series (Skyrim with DLCs)**

 **Author: CatandKaraForever**

 **Rating: T**

 **Genres: Romance, Adventure, Action, Fantasy**

 _ **Serana's Point of View:**_

Allea fidgeted with the buckles of her leather armor. The leather plates were leaf shaped, her own design and due to her half-Altmer blood.

"We don't have enough security," she said flatly, "The dignitaries won't trust us. We'll be attacked. Our guards won't be able to stop assassins."

I put my hand reassuringly on her shoulder.

"No," I said, "Don't think like that. We have Kira here, we have the entire Diamond City guard, we have us, all the dignitaries said they're bringing their own guards. Everything will be fine."

"What if the Diamond City guards are compromised? We can't take any risks, Serana. We've got too many important personages in one tiny town."

"Don't worry," I said, not completely sure what else to say, "You're just being paranoid."

"Paranoid? We've got the ruler of every province of Tamriel coming. Can we EVER have enough security?"

"We don't actually have someone from every province. The Dominion didn't respond, remember?"

"Well I know that," she said, "But still we've got someone important from practically everywhere."

"It'll be fine," I assured her.

* * *

"Greetings," Allea said, her gaze sweeping across the large room where the dignitaries were gathered, "As you know, my name is Allea. I am a Jarl of Skyrim. I rule Diamond City and the deepest depths of Skyrim, some of which lay below us, the city of Fal Zhardum Din, Blackreach. I apologize for pulling you away from your duties, I understand how important they are."  
She pursed her lips in thought for a moment before she continued. I stood next to her, the silent watcher, monitoring the entire room for signs of trouble.

"The reason I summoned you here is to extend an invitation to you, at the most, and information at the least. El-lee? Perhaps you would help explain the nautical parts of this?"

The Argonian woman nodded as she rose from her seat and moved to stand on the other side of Allea from me.

"At this time, there is a ship docked in Dawnstar, positioned to depart the region immediately around Tamriel through the Sea of Ghosts. The ship has a safe passenger capacity of three dozen, and that's when sailing light, without more than about a month worth of food and water weighing it down. With a full cargo bay of food and water? Two dozen at the maximum. The ship has a small amount of armor, light iron plating which will protect from arrows and likely crossbow attacks. Anything stronger will likely do damage, at least to the armor if not the ship itself. The armor only protects the hull."  
"Thank you," Allea said with a nod to our naval commander, "Though I would like to next extend the invitation, I must first explain the purpose of this entire operation."

"Just get to the point, Nord," I heard Velth Redoran say, "We don't have all day."

Ulfric whirled on him, staring him down. I watched in shock as the middle-aged dark elf seemed to shrivel under Ulfric's strong gaze.

"As I was saying," Allea said with a tone of annoyance as she continued, "The purpose of the operation is to go on an exploratory mission beyond the borders of Tamriel. My wife and I."  
Here she paused, gesturing to me.

"We believe that there must be other land besides Tamriel out there. With as large as we believe Nirn to be? It seems extremely unlikely that there's not."

Empress Salrina Conunceia of Cyrodiil nodded her agreement.

"That makes sense," the woman said, a thoughtful smile on her face, "What is your plan for the operation? And..what directly does this have to do with us?"

"We intend to chart any land we may discover," Allea explained, "While we could just send physical copies of any new maps to the leaders of the provinces, certain leaders…"

She paused, giving a pointed look to Velth.

"Are let's just say...distrustful and paranoid of deception."

I remembered then Velth's reputation for paranoia and distrust.

"Therefore," Allea began again, "Serana and I decided, along with my half-sister, who regrettably could not be here this evening, that the rulers of each province could elect their own cartographer. One per province, along with two guards per cartographer. Like the cartographers, the guards would be hand picked by the rulers. In addition to the cartographers and their guards, there would be several other members of this team. Captain Salazar."

"Yes, milady?"

"Bring them in," Allea said.

The captain nodded, leaving the room. When he returned, he wasn't alone. Melodia followed him in, her sparkly gold dress trailing along the stone floor. She had long, loose sleeves on the dress but I had helped forge it. The dress looked harmless, but it was actually armor, Daedric quality. The sleeves concealed a pair of hidden wrist blades which she could trigger by flicking her wrists sharply enough. Her hair was pinned up in a sharp bun, and she had a cool-headed seriousness about her. All in all, aside from Allea she was looking like the most beautiful woman I'd ever seen, but I supposed some of it was likely the natural seductive qualities of Sirens influencing me. Behind her came Arissa. Arissa was wearing a set of elven-colored ebony armor, an ornate elven saber resting on one hip. Her hands hung at her side, and she had a gold and ruby circlet on her head. Behind Arissa came Vilja, wearing a set of leather armor not unlike the one Allea was wearing. She had no visible weapon, but there were a pair of daggers concealed in her boots, one in each. Behind the Imperial woman came Inigo. He was wearing a set of jet black leather armor, not unlike the dark brotherhood armor in shape, but it had a symbol on its chest, one which had become the flag of Diamond City and Fal Zhardum Din. The symbol was a woman with dragon wings as she cut down a great serpentine beast. Inigo wore his two swords, but they were visibly tied. Only me and Allea knew the truth. Were Inigo to yank at the blades, the ties that made them appear restrained would fall free, and he would be unrestricted in his movement and attacks. Our friends formed a line against the wall next to Allea, their hands behind their backs.

"This is the team that went to war with the True Believers, and battled the Khazad," Allea explained, pointing them each out in turn as she continued, "Inigo, Arissa, Vilja and Melodia. And you already know someone from that team. My lovely wife went to fight with them as well."

The other rulers, aside from Velth, nodded in respect.

"You may have noticed the fleet of carriages outside," I chimed in, having wanted to be part of the meeting all along and help explain.

"What? The carriages we brought?"

"No, Empress Salrina," Allea said with respect, "The others. The armored ones. Those are meant to provide safe transportation from Diamond City to Dawnstar for the cartographers and their bodyguards. We were planning that any dignitaries planning to participate in the operation dispatch cartographers and their guards to come here, to the city. The groups could depart for Dawnstar on will, however the ship would not depart until all participating cartographers have arrived."

"Jarl Allea," Empress Salrina said, "I will dispatch a cartographer to Skyrim as soon as I arrive back in Cyrodiil."

Allea nodded respectfully.

"I look forward to seeing them."

"And I too," Queen Mannira Tleldam of Hammerfell informed us, "Will join your expedition."

Allea nodded again, her gaze going to King Ernonan Ottuilie of High Rock. The Breton nodded at her.

"As will I."

Her gaze next went to Warlord Bagrol Ulfinag of Orsinium.

"The Orcs will stand with your expedition," the orc growled.

"As will this one," Ahvazi of Elsweyr said slowly.

"King Tuunros Nightmire?"

The elf nodded, "Yes. The Bosmer will join you."

Amuei Theerteus of Black Marsh nodded his agreement.

"I will send aid to your expedition."

Allea turned to Ulfric, who nodded to confirm he would join.

"Are you all daft?"

"I beg your pardon?"

Velth looked angry.

"This is obviously a trap. The intention is to lure our best cartographers onto a boat in the middle of nowhere, to slay them. If this expedition goes along as planned, Skyrim, nay, simply this pathetic undead Nord girl will have a strategic advantage over every other province."

My fingers twitched, as it was incredibly tempting to fire an ice spike through Velth's skull right then and there due to the way he was insulting Allea. Ulfric rose to his feet, his fists clenched. I saw Inigo's hands drop into the position he adopted when he was preparing to draw his swords rapidly. Arissa rested her hand on the pommel of her elven saber, staring down the Dunmer. Allea was the only one who didn't look alarmed in this whole situation, as even Melodia had her wrist primed to flick to deploy her wrist blades, and Vilja was sitting on the ground, her hands on her boots. There was a release on each of her boots, to open a compartment so she could pull her daggers. Her hands rested on the releases, but she wasn't engaging it. The other dignitaries were moving towards the exit, their guards forming a line in front of them.

"Everyone just stand down," Allea said calmly, "There's no need for bloodshed. Master Redoran, I realize that you don't trust me, or anyone for that matter. But there is no need for your brash accusations."

"Allea of Skyrim."

It was an intentional slur not addressing her by any other title.

"Nords flying that insignia," he said, pointing to a flag which bore the same logo as the one on Inigo's chest, "Slew my family in cold blood. My wife, my two daughters, my son. They made me watch as they burned them alive. Slowly."

"Master Redoran, this is the first I've heard of such an incident. While I'm not going to accuse you of being a liar and say that it didn't happen, those Nords were not operating on my orders. We did have an issue a couple of months ago with a cell of extremely...let's just say racist members of our forces. We finally tracked them down about one month ago. We slaughtered them in cold blood, they didn't give us a choice however."

"I don't trust you," Velth said again, "But I see no indication in your behavior that you are lying. Very well. For the sake of Morrowind, there will be no further issues between the two of us. At least..not that I initiate. A cartographer will be sent."

I relaxed, letting the magic in my hands fade away. Everyone else visibly relaxed.

"Master Redoran, I offer my condolences for your loss. I know what it's like to lose family," Allea said, and I could feel Illusion magic seeping off of her, my guess was she was trying to further calm him down with a spell, "But I'm glad that this didn't come to bloodshed."

"And I apologize for my..brash behavior. I let my emotions get the best of me. When I had my little...outburst, I wasn't thinking about Morrowind I was thinking of myself and I apologize."

My wife waved it off. I glanced at Melodia out of the corner of my eye and she nodded subtly. The Siren had been training in the art of her Siren charm magic and I'd had a hunch she had helped too. Her nod confirmed it.


	3. Chapter 3: Allea's Point of View

**An Prolonged Love**

 **Fandom: Elder Scrolls Series (Skyrim with DLCs)**

 **Author: CatandKaraForever**

 **Rating: T**

 **Genres: Romance, Adventure, Action, Fantasy**

 _ **Allea's Point of View:**_

I stood on the deck of the Antares, the ship that the expedition was to take for the mission. Next to me stood the eight cartographers and their guards, on my left flank. On my right flank stood my friends. A cold wind nipped at my face as I stood there, despite my vampiric frost resistance. Serana was in the crow's nest, holding Auriel's Bow so she could pick off any troublemakers from afar. We suspected that while we had no specific threats that we knew of, an important voyage such as this might come under attack.

"This one wishes we could get out of this wasteland and start our adventure," I heard the Khajiit cartographer, K'dran, say.

"Shush your mouth, cat," Trasic Afraey, the Breton cartographer, hissed, "Lady Allea wishes to make a speech before we depart and the crowd is not very large just yet."

"I'm with K'dran," Celekar Oakrock, a Bosmer of Valenwood, said, "We are exposed to attack like this."

"There is no reward for the impatient," Cisia Carillius said, "If Lady Allea is not ready to depart we must be patient."

I nodded in gratitude to the Imperial, glaring at Trasic and K'dran.

"We should be safe," Philan, the Redguard cartographer, pointed out, "Lady Serana is up in the crow's nest with a bow. She'll pick off any threats long before they reach us."

"And besides, even if it comes down to open battle," the Nordic cartographer, a blonde haired Stormcloak woman with a scar over one eye, whose name was Lamiidil, said, "There's a lot of us. We're all capable combatants. We can defend ourselves. Especially with Lady Serana sniping."

A deep orc voice interjected, "Still...I don't like this."

"Oh relax, orc," Dinsu Redoran hissed, "The greatest threat is from Allea and Serana and their friends..Not from outsiders."

Krom glared at the Dunmer.

"Everyone just calm down," I said, letting a bit of calming magic seep out and into the area, "No one is going to hurt anyone here. We're all allies."

By now a significant crowd had gathered and I was ready to speak.

"Now. Please, be quiet so that I can address the crowd."

The cartographers nodded in relief.

I turned back to face the crowd.

"People of Skyrim," I began, "We are gathered here today to...address some fears that the public may have due to what is happening here. Yes. I am leaving Skyrim. Nay. Leaving Tamriel. Nay. It is not permanent. I will return. I do not know when, but as I just said I'll be back. No. There will NOT be a lack of protection for the populace. I am not the only Dovahkiin alive in this era, much less the only capable one. I present to you."

I paused, Kira coming up from below to stand in front of me.

"Kiraak. Dragonborn of the second era."

"Welcome, Dovahkiin of the second era."

Kira nodded.

"Not much will change for Skyrim. You'll still have a Dovahkiin looking out for you. The only major difference is that I will not be ruling Fal Zhardum Din. My half sister, who already co-runs Diamond City with me, will be running the cities on my behalf."


	4. Chapter 4: Serana's Point of View

**An Prolonged Love**

 **Fandom: Elder Scrolls Series (Skyrim with DLCs)**

 **Author: CatandKaraForever**

 **Rating: T**

 **Genres: Romance, Adventure, Action, Fantasy**

 _ **Serana's Point of View:**_

A heavy fog swirled around the _Antares_ , the drops of water stinging against my face. In the distance, I thought I saw another ship, but in the midnight moonlight couldn't be sure. I narrowed my eyes, focusing in on what appeared to be a silhouette of a ship. I was right.

"Ship ahoy," I shouted, "Off starboard bow!"

I picked up the spyglass that was resting on the table next to me, using it to further enhance my view of the ship. There were figures moving around on deck, and I stared at them. There was something unusual about their movement, but before I could put my finger on it the ship vanished into thin air.

"What in Oblivion?"

"The ship vanished," Allea said, a confused tone in her voice.

"Ship on our port side," Melodia shouted, and I turned to face that way.

The ship was visibly ancient, the sails torn and scorched in places. Cobwebs coated the sides, and there were small holes in the hull. The figures were elven, as I could tell by their armor, though it was ancient and rusted, with gashes in some places. A plank dropped from the other ship, forming a bridge over to ours. The elves drew their sabers, charging at us.

"Look out!"

"Get the cartographers inside," Allea ordered, and Vilja nodded, guiding them into the cabin.

"We're under attack!"

I lunged at one of them, driving him back with a heavy barrage of strikes, which he deflected with ease as he retreated. When he stepped into the moonlight his face changed, decaying into a bare skull with strips of rotten flesh hanging off. I shivered in disgust, and he stabbed at me. I stepped aside from the blow, kicking the strange elf in the knee.

"These elves aren't alive," I said with a burst of realization with their condition, "They're some kind of undead!"

Melodia decapitated one, but it just kept coming at her. She slashed a deep ugly gash out of its chest, lunging in and stabbing it. It snarled, pulling the blade out of its chest. This particular one was still in the shadows and looked normal aside from the armor. She slashed it in two with a heavy stroke from her blade, and it turned to ash for a moment before reappearing intact on its ship. Another one leapt through the air, lunging at me. It brought its heavy broadsword down in a two handed chop which sent me staggering back. I dropped my weapon, and the elf-thing smashed me over the head with the flat of the blade. I fell to the ground, crawling backwards and towards the nearest improvised weapon I could see, a lit lantern. I climbed to my feet, grabbing the lantern and tossing it at the elf as it gave chase. The creature burst into flames, and then turned to ash.

"Fire is effective," I hissed, "Light them on fire!"

A blast of flame seared past me, lighting one of the elves on fire. I snatched up my fallen sword, picking up a torch out of the holder. I swung it around, just as one of the monstrous elves lunged at me, and the torch caught it in the side of its face. It let out a sharp cry of pain, before I smashed the pommel of my weapon into its skull, and there was a heavy crack as it split its skull. Another blast of flame burned this one to ash, and I grinned. Melodia brought her shield up, blocking a heavy war axe blow. She muttered the command word, trapping the creature's axe.

"Be wary of their weapons," Allea called, "I can sense an...enchantment on these blades and can't tell what it does."

Melodia stabbed her blade through her foe's stomach, and then ripped it free. She drew back a breath, and when she released it it was with a blast of orange and red energy that burned her foe to ash. I glanced back at the enemy ship, to see the elf not reappear.  
" _YOL TOOR SHUUL_ ," Allea Shouted, sending forth an enormous blast of flame that formed a wall of flame near the bridge on the other ship, cutting off the elves from retreating.

Inigo drove his foe back with several hammering blows, but it was me that slew the creature, casting a fireball that blew its skeleton to bits. The last of the strange creatures fell as Allea blasted it apart with a fireball.

"Let's check the other ship," I said, "Make sure that was the last."  
She nodded.

"You stay here," she said, gesturing to our friends, "We should be able to take down a couple of these things ourselves if it comes to it. Make sure none come up from the depths or anything."

They nodded and we pressed across onto the other ship.

"Somebody help me!"

I followed the noise, finding that though there were no more elves, there was a prisoner. I sliced his chains.  
"You alright? What happened?"

"Thank Talos," he said, "Thought they were gonna turn me."

"What? Turn you?"

"Aye," he said, "The sea ghouls, they..slaughter ship crews, leave the captain alive and then they turn the captain into one of their own by transferring their saliva into the bloodstream."

I nodded.  
"Who are you?"

"My name is Sigaeir Salty-Sage," he said, "I'm from Skyrim, an old exploration mission three years ago that met with disaster, we were slain by these monsters and they wanted to turn me."  
"Why didn't they turn you yet?"

"I...do not know," Sigaeir admitted reluctantly, "I mean...I did have an amulet on me and it broke."  
"Was the amulet enchanted?"

He shook his head.

"It was silver but no."

"Perhaps..Perhaps the silver protected you?"

"Maybe," he said.


	5. Chapter 5: Allea's Point of View

**An Prolonged Love**

 **Fandom: Elder Scrolls Series (Skyrim with DLCs)**

 **Author: CatandKaraForever**

 **Rating: T**

 **Genres: Romance, Adventure, Action, Fantasy**

 _ **Allea's Point of View:**_

The ship rocked and I heard a strange scraping noise.

"What's that?"

The ship rocked again, and I looked over the edge of the ship. One of the three masts of a ship was scraping along the bottom of our hull.

"We're on top of a ship," I exclaimed, "There's a shipwreck below us!"

"Should we investigate it?"

Serana nodded.

"It doesn't look like any ship I've ever seen before," El-Lee said, "This could be some other civilization."

"All the more reason to investigate it," I said, "Serana. You stay up here. El-Lee, you come with me. Serana, you and Inigo tie ropes to El-Lee and I. Three tugs means we're ready to come up, one to go deeper. Two if we've found something and want you to come down with us. Everyone else, carry on whatever you're doing."

* * *

My vampiric vision cut through the depths with ease as El-Lee and I dropped towards the deck of the ship. I landed with a muffled thud, looking over the ship. The vessel was unique in design, three masts, each of which looked like a tree,with the sails being giant leaves. The sails were mostly rotted away, but there was just enough remaining of one for me to discern the shape. Three tree-like extensions came off the bow as well.

What in Oblivion is this ship?

I pulled up and away, swimming towards the bow and up towards the surface, looking at it again. The main bulk of the ship appeared to be a giant tree, the masts and extensions off the bow appearing like saplings. Like the masts, the extensions bore leaves, though only about a third of one leaf on only one extension actually still had a leaf attached, the others having rotted away. El-Lee bore a baffled expression as she looked at me. I shrugged, just as confused as she was. I gestured to the surface, pretending to give my rope three quick tugs. The Argonian nodded, tugging on her rope, and I did the same. We climbed back onto the Antares.

"What happened down there?"  
"Nothing," I said, "We need lights and such before we're going back down though. That ship? It's definitely a civilization we haven't encountered before."  
"What do you mean?"

"The whole thing is a giant..tree."

"Tree?"

"Aye," El-Lee said, "It appears it was carved out of the tree, it's a miracle but some of the sails are intact. They look like..leaves."

"Sounds elven," Melodia said, "But what kind of elf makes a ship like that?"

"Not one I've ever heard of," Serana said, "Though…No. That can't be."

"What is it?"

"When I was just a young girl, before I was turned into a vampire, my mother used to tell me stories," Serana explained, "She said they were just legends, that they had no basis in reality…But these stories...They talked about elves, I can't remember what she called them, but they're not Bosmer or Dunmer or Altmer anything like that. The story was that there was a race of elves who existed on a continent, though apparently called Kraewan if I remember correctly. I mean that the province is Kraewan not the elves there. But in her stories, these elves were able to sing their ships into existence. They wouldn't even need to be at a source of wood to make them. Their voices would make the ships out of nothing. Their voices would just make the ships form. It was...quite impressive to me when I was younger. I don't see how it can be possible though."

"Why didn't you ever tell me about that?"

"I'd actually forgotten," Serana said, "I would have if I'd remembered, it seems like something you'd be fascinated by."

I nodded.

"I never really believed that the Kraewan elves existed," my wife admitted, "But from what I can see about that ship, and your description of it? It sounds like something the Kraewan elves could have made, especially if they were able to sing things into existence."

I pursed my lips in thought, watching out over the ocean. As I watched, I saw the sun glint off something in the distance. I blinked, staring at it.

"Guys, did you see that?"

"What?"

"The sun..I just.."

I saw the shimmer again, and this time I shouted as I pointed.

"There! Look! The sun reflecting off something!"

"Could it just be the water?"

I shook my head.

"I don't think so," I replied, "There's something about it. Serana, hand me the spyglass."

She did so and I took off, running across the deck to the ladder which led to the crow's nest. I waited for a moment, hoping the reflection would flash again. Sure enough, it did, and I brought the spyglass up to look towards it. There was a tower in the distance, twisted and some of the the stones missing, but definitely a tower. At the very top there was a large plate of glass, which I guessed was what the sun had reflected off of to catch my eye initially. I lowered the spyglass to look at the base of the tower. There were smaller buildings around the base, though they were in significantly worse shape than the tower. I saw three shipwrecks near the beach. The ships were all significantly rotten, though not one of the decks was completely underwater. One was sideways on the beach, the front half missing. One was split in two on rocks a few yards of the beach. The third was vertical, the front half underwater.

"Land ahoy," I shouted, lowering the spyglass, and pointing.

"What? We've only been sailing for a month," Serana called to me, "You'd think someone would have already found new land this close to Skyrim!"

I slid down the ladder to Serana, and turned to respond.

"Yeah I know," I said, "Unless."

"What are you thinking?"

"There are three shipwrecks near the lighthouse," I explained, "Can't discern their origin...from here at least."

Serana nodded.

"Oh I see. You think?"

"Perhaps those ships are Tamrielic in origin and the reason we've never heard anything about this land is because they wrecked."

"That..makes sense," Serana admitted.

I looked back towards the land.

"Perhaps we should take lifeboats to land from here, just in case we run into trouble. What can you tell about the shipwrecks?"

"Quite peculiar," I admitted, "One ship was sideways on the beach, the front half was completely gone. Another was vertical, the bow submerged. The other looked like they'd rammed the rock, split in two right down the middle."

A loud roar filled the air and I jumped in shock.

"What in Oblivion was that?"

My hand dropped to the pommel of my sword. There was a louder roar and I saw an enormous serpent leap from the water. I ripped my blade free as it flipped through the air and turned to face us.


	6. Chapter 6: Serana's Point of View

**An Prolonged Love**

 **Fandom: Elder Scrolls Series (Skyrim with DLCs)**

 **Author: CatandKaraForever**

 **Rating: T**

 **Genres: Romance, Adventure, Action, Fantasy**

 _ **Serana's Point of View:**_

The serpent came down, letting out a booming roar as it snapped at our boat. A powerful blast of Siren force sent the serpent flying backwards and splashing back into the water. I fired a sunhallowed arrow forth. The arrow failed to penetrate the beast's thick hide, but there was still an explosion of solar energy which scorched it but otherwise didn't seem to bother it.

" _ODAHVIING_ ," Allea Shouted, summoning the powerful dragon.

A few moments later, I heard the dragon roar as he launched into his attack. A jet of orange flame caught the serpent square on. The serpent roared in pain and rage and snapped at Odahviing. The dragon spun through the air, avoiding the monster's razor sharp teeth. Odahviing's claws tore into the beast's hide, and it roared again. I kept up a steady bombardment of magical arrows, hoping that a barrage of arrows would affect it even though the individual arrows did not.

"Get into the cabins," Allea ordered, clutching at her amulet of Talos, closing her eyes in concentration, "I'm going to Shout and you can't be outside in it, you might get hit!"

I nodded, scrambling for cover as I realized what was happening. My wife was using her amulet to accelerate the regeneration of her Thu'um, so that she could summon a storm for the lightning blasts to hurt the beast.

 _"Odahviing,"_ she called, "Get back, at least a mile away, return when you can see the lightning has stopped!"

The dragon roared as he flew away.

 _"STRUN BAH QUO!"_

I heard the rumble of thunder as clouds formed swiftly. Several lightning blasts hammered down from the sky, each one striking the serpent. Each impact caused the serpent to let out a sharp cry of rage and pain. A moment later the clouds faded and Odahviing came streaking back in, his wings tucked flat to accelerate his flight. His talons tore into the beast's hide, the speed at which he was flying increasing the force with which he tore into it. He sank his teeth into the beast, shaking his head fiercely. Blood splattered across the dragon's underbelly and legs and the serpent roared in pain, attempting to throw the large dragon off. Odahviing disengaged, releasing the serpent, but it was only to pull back and Shout another massive blast of fire against the serpent.  
"Odahviing! Come down here I want to ride you!"

The dragon descended, and Allea sprang onto his back. She grabbed one of his horns, and I saw her mouthing words softly. Odahviing flew past the ship, and Allea mouthed 'I'm sorry.' as they flew past. The red dragon circled around, and as the serpent snapped at the dragon, Allea sprang sliding her sword into its scabbard. She dropped into the serpent's open mouth, and I stared in shock. Allea had never done anything quite that extreme in our fights together before, and I wasn't certain she'd make it out alive. I sprinted onto the deck, preparing another arrow in case I had a chance to shoot.

"What is she doing?"

"I have no clue," I called back, not taking my eyes off the serpent.

It let out a pained roar, and I saw brilliant flashes coming out of its mouth. I saw part of its chest punch out a bit before going back to normal. Suddenly an ugly black mouth opened in its chest, followed by the flaming tip of a sword. The hole widened, and Allea leapt out, her blade aflame. Her movement was quite unusual, and I could have sworn I saw scaly wings on her back, but she was moving too fast to tell for sure. She landed on the serpent's back and started attacking again. Her flaming blade punched through its thick hide, and it roared in pain again. She somersaulted back into its open mouth, and I saw several more flashes before she came flying out. This time she hovered in mid air, and I could tell that she had wings. She glided to the deck of the ship, then the wings receded as she landed.

"What in Oblivion was that?"

She slid her weapon away as the serpent disintegrated behind us.

"What? I killed it," she said, "So what?"

"You're just gonna say 'so what?'"

"What else is there to say?"

"Are you going to ignore the fact that you grew wings?"

"Wings? What are you talking about?"

"You were flying," I said, "You had wings, like a dragon."

"I don't know what you're talking about. Though.."

"Though what?"

"It felt like I blacked out or something," she said, "I dropped into the serpent's mouth, that's the last thing I remember before being on the deck."

"I apologize for...controlling you, vampire," it said, "It was the only way that I could slay your foe quick enough to save you and your ship."

"What are you?"

"I am...A superior being. That is all you need to know. It is in your best interests to turn back."

"Turn back? After all that? That thing? We want to see what this land is like."

The voice went silent and I sighed.

"Should we turn back?"  
"Why? Just because of one creature and a voice that suggests we do?"

I pursed my lips in thought.

"No. We do not turn back over this. We've got plenty of supplies. We came to determine if there was land. That was only one foe."

I moved to stand beside her.

"I say we take a vote on whether we stay."

Melodia nodded.

"All in favor of heading home raise your hands."

Dinsu raised his hand, but the others did not.

"All in favor of investigating this new land?"

Aside from the Dunmer, everyone raised their hands.

"Very well," I said, "We will make landfall."

* * *

I stepped off the boat, my feet sinking into the wet sand a little. I looked around, my hand resting on the pommel of my blade so as to be ready if we were attacked, but not look menacing. The cartographers had remained on the ship in case we were assaulted on the beach. I saw movement on the edge of the forest, and I moved forward with caution, my hand resting on my blade so I could protect myself fast. I got a glimpse of the creature I had seen, it appeared to be a large elk. I relaxed, but as I did so I heard something behind me and turned. I was greeted by a heavy staff smashing me in the face. I staggered back, and my attacker swept my legs out under me. She knocked me to the ground and ran off as I climbed to my feet. She turned back to me, casting a ball of green magic which rendered me unconscious.


	7. Chapter 7: Allea's Point of View

**An Prolonged Love**

 **Fandom: Elder Scrolls Series (Skyrim with DLCs)**

 **Author: CatandKaraForever**

 **Rating: T**

 **Genres: Romance, Adventure, Action, Fantasy**

 _ **Allea's Point of View:**_

I woke with my arms tied behind my back, sitting against a tree. I blinked, looking around. My companions were also tied against trees. Aside from small amounts of blood where they'd been struck over the head they looked unharmed.  
"You're awake," I heard a woman say, and a moment later she came into my view.

"Who are you? What do you want from us?"

"I apologize for assaulting you and your group," she said, "We wanted to be able to find out your..intentions without the risk of assault."

"Don't you think a civil conversation would have been easier if you hadn't knocked us out and tied us up first?"

She leaned against her staff, her face an emotionless mask.

"What brings you to our land?"  
"We're..explorers," I said, "Our expedition bears no soldiers, only adventurers who seek to find new lands. Obviously, we succeeded in that."  
"What's your reason for seeking new lands? Greed? Destruction of your own land? What?"

"Curiosity," I offered questioningly, "We assumed there must be more land than just Tamriel out there, well besides Tamriel and the Summerset Isles I mean."

She stared me in the eyes, her gaze piercing my soul.

"Very well," she said, propping her staff against another tree next to her and dropping her hand to her waist where she wore a strange ivory colored dagger.

She pulled out the weapon, and for a moment I stared at her, expecting her to slice my throat.

"Relax," she said as she knelt in front of me, "I'm not going to hurt you. I'm just going to cut you free of these ropes."

I nodded, and she did so. I rubbed my sore wrists, and she turned to Serana and did the same. Serana readied an ice spell as she stood up and I waved at her.

"Serana no. This is all a misunderstanding."

She narrowed her orange eyes and relaxed, releasing the spell without launching the projectile. The others were still unconscious, until they were cut free.

"Relax," I told them as they twitched towards their weapons, "Everything's alright..I think."

"I hope we did not deliver any serious injuries," the staff-wielder said, "Our intent was to incapacitate not injure."

"What was the point of assaulting us? And how'd you take us down so quick?"

"Surprise, mostly," the hooded woman said, "Getting the jump on the cat-man was tricky though."

"Who are you?"

"My name is Calista," the one with the staff said, "Sister Calista of the Order of Isoi."  
"Sister Alylyssa of the Order of Isoi," the hooded woman said, hanging her strange weapon on her belt.

"What is that thing?"

"What?"

"Your weapon," I said, pointing at Alylyssa's waist.

"Oh, right."

She took it off her belt.

"It's called a nunchaku," she said, letting me get a good look at it.

It was two rods of the same ivory colored material as the dagger, joined by a metal chain.

"A nunchaku?"  
"Aye, it's a very old weapon, at least the nunchaku in general is mine's fairly new only 5 years old," she said with a small laugh.

I chuckled, but then a shadow pulsed by. I glanced up quickly, to see nothing. I assumed it was a large bird or fast moving airborne animal, until Alylyssa gripped her weapon tighter.

"What?"

"There was something...wrong about that shadow," Calista said, "Keep your eyes open people."

I nodded, my hand dropping to the hilt of my blade. Calista readied her staff, looking up quickly. I followed her gaze, just in time to see a line of black energy dart into the sky. Another shadow pulsed through the sky.

"Isoi protect us," Calista muttered, her face going white as she clenched her staff tighter, "Not again… The shadowmen!"

"Shadowmen?"

"Come on, no time to explain we have to get back to our temple," Alylyssa said, gripping her nunchaku tight and taking off running down the road. Calista sprinted off in pursuit.

"I guess we should follow them?"

I slid to a stop, as I took in the scene in front of me. Calista and Alylyssa were locked in battle with several shadowy figures at once. Shadows seemed to pour off the figures' flesh as they fought. I ripped my sword free of its scabbard, summoning a ball of flame.

" _WUULD NAH KEST_ ," I Shouted, the Thu'um carrying me forward.

I caught one of the shadow-figures by surprise, my blade slicing through its throat. I expected it to fall away, but it just hissed at me and pressed forward, bringing its own blade, which appeared to be black steel with shadows coming off the blade, forward. My blade rang loudly off the shadowy weapon, and I kicked it in the knee. A blast of white flame surged forward, burning the shadow away.

"Your blades are useless," Alylyssa called to me, "The shadows are only vulnerable to silver weapons and magic!"

Alylyssa smashed a shadowman's skull with a single heavy blow from her nunchaku, and Calista summoned a wall of white flame between herself and her foe. She pulled back, gripping her staff tightly as the wall of flame collapsed. She sent a large bolt of white flame into the shadowman's chest and it fell backwards, a gaping hole in its chest.

" _YOL TOOR SHUUL_ ," I Shouted, my fire breath dissolving one of the shadows.

I felt a cold burning and a sharp pain in my back, and I turned, grimacing. A shadow warrior had slipped up behind me and drove its blade through my back. I ripped the blade free, passing out.


	8. Chapter 8: Serana's Point of View

**An Prolonged Love**

 **Fandom: Elder Scrolls Series (Skyrim with DLCs)**

 **Author: CatandKaraForever**

 **Rating: T**

 **Genres: Romance, Adventure, Action, Fantasy**

 _ **Serana's Point of View:**_

Allea groaned, her eyes fluttering. The large stab wound had healed swiftly, but she'd slipped into a coma for several days after the battle with the shadowy warriors. I smiled, speaking softly.

"How are you feeling?"

"Like I've been mauled by a sabercat," she groaned, "My head feels like it's going to explode."  
Something about her comments made me nervous, as I figured a single stab wound shouldn't cause a pain in her head. I grabbed her hand, which felt unusually cold.

"What happened?"  
"You got stabbed, by one of those shadow warriors," I told her, "Calista and Alylyssa brought you in here to heal and rest."

"What in Talos," she said.

"What?"

"Look at my hand."

I looked and saw her hand was closed to a fist, inside of my own.  
"What in Oblivion?"  
She pulled her hand out, and I saw that it was transparent, with tinges of black coming off of it. As I stared at it it faded back into its normal appearance. I cautiously reached out and tapped her on the knuckle, and found that it was solid again. I stared at her in confusion.

"What was that?"

"I don't know," she said, as the rest of her started to fade out the same way.

Calista's staff swiftly pressed into my wife's neck, and she went stiff.

"Be still," she hissed, "I would hate to have to put you down."

"If you hurt her I swear to Oblivion," I growled at the warrior-monk, my fist clenching to summon ice.

I heard a dull ring as Alylyssa drew her dagger and nunchaku behind me.  
"If you hurt her I will smash your skull, outsider," the other woman warned.

"Everyone just calm down," Allea said, her skin returning to normal, "I mean you no harm."

"We have no way of knowing that," Calista said, her staff still pressing into Allea's neck, "You've been infected with the Shadow-Curse. You could become one of..them at any moment!"

Black particles began to float off of Allea's skin. A moment later, there was a pulse of energy which sent Calista and Alylyssa flying backwards. They groaned in pain as they lay on the ground stunned.

"Oblivion, I'm sorry! I don't know what's happening," Allea shouted, tenseness in her voice.

The two monks rose to their feet, preparing to fight. I drew my sword, preparing to defend myself and Allea.

Calista lunged in, sweeping her staff towards my ribs, and I sidestepped away, darting in and smacking her arm with the flat of my blade. She grunted, and I kicked her in the knee, which forced her to the ground. I wrested her staff away from her, catching her in the side of the head and knocking her out. I tossed the staff to Allea, as she was currently weaponless. Alylyssa growled, sweeping her nunchaku in a heavy blow which caught me in the ribs. I grunted in pain, and she darted in, driving her knife into my stomach. I gasped, and she pulled the blade out, lunging at Allea. Allea batted the dagger away with a heavy blow from Calista's staff, ducking under the nunchaku sweep that was aimed for her skull. She smashed the tip of Calista's staff into the other woman's stomach, knocking the wind out of her.  
"Stand down," she hissed as I cast a healing spell, "I didn't want to hurt you!"

"You..monster!"

"What? You mean the fading? I'm not doing that, I don't understand it!"

I cast a paralysis spell on each of them, confiscating Alylyssa's dagger and nunchaku. Calista groaned, but otherwise did nothing. I hauled her to her knees next to Calista.

"You'll both pay for this," Calista groaned, "Monsters."  
"I know we incapacitated you and I apologize for that," Allea said, "We're only trying to protect ourselves."

"You..lie. Wraith."

"I'm no wraith," Allea hissed, "This is strange to me too. If I were a wraith I would have slain you in that exchange, not incapacitated you and bound you. How do you..cure this? I would rather not be fading in and out of physical form randomly for the rest of my life."

"There is no cure for the Shadow-Curse, fool. If it takes you, you'll turn into one of those warriors like we fought earlier. And that'll be you until you're putting down. Cursed to wander the area around where you were infected."

She spat in my wife's face. My wife brushed off her face and spoke again.

"Very well," she said, "If you cannot help me, can you point me to someone who can?"

Calista thought for a moment.

"Wraiths do not age...Before the Cycle hit us this time..Enderal used to be very populated, cities of tens of thousands of people, for the most, Ark was populated by hundreds of thousands."

I interrupted her, "Cycle?"

"Aye, essentially the end of the world. Two great heroes, Gauli, otherwise known by as The Prophet, and her lover Calia, they fought valiantly alongside the Holy Order to prevent it, but there was an invasion by forces from another continent that turned the Endralean military to nothing during a siege of Ark. In the end, only Gauli and Calia were able to stop it, and even then, Gauli had to give her life to stop it from claiming the world and not just Enderal. When the Cycle occurs, there's no way of preventing it from claiming Enderal."

"I see," Allea said, a confused expression, "What were you saying before Serana interrupted you?"

"There were rumors of a mage, who was infected with the Shadow-Curse, not unlike you were...He learned to control it and so he could turn incorporeal at will instead of just having it randomly happen. If the Shadowmen we fought survived the Cycle, then if this mage existed...He could theoretically still be in Enderal."

"Where was he rumored to reside?"

"There was a tower...Located in the Frostcliff mountains, not far east from North Grave...We'll take you to North Grave, but after that you're on your own."

I nodded.

I drew my blade, slicing open the ropes with which we'd bound the two monks.

"Can we have our weapons back?"

Allea narrowed her eyes.

"Fine."

I handed them back their weapons and they stood up, watching us carefully.


	9. Chapter 9: Allea's Point of View

**An Prolonged Love**

 **Fandom: Elder Scrolls Series (Skyrim with DLCs)**

 **Author: CatandKaraForever**

 **Rating: T**

 **Genres: Romance, Adventure, Action, Fantasy**

 _ **Allea's Point of View:**_

"This is as far as we take you," Calista said, "This is North Grave."

North Grave was an ancient tomb, and the architecture was strangely Nordic looking.

"We're gonna clear out the ruin," I told her, "Can you mark which way is east?"

"That way's east," she said, pointing, "Follow the twisting path!"

I nodded, and turned towards the entrance of the ruin.

"We're going to head back to the temple now," Alylyssa told us, "Good luck on your journey."

They turned and started walking back the way we had come. I drew my sword, preparing to fight whatever lay inside the ruin. I also summoned a vampiric drain spell. Serana summoned a frost spell in one hand and ice spikes in her other. We entered the ruin, and saw there were two rooms.  
"You take the right, I'll take the left," I said, and my wife nodded.

I entered the room, and the first thing I saw were two Draugr-like creatures with glowing green eyes and a spectral blue skeleton. There was something about them that was off, something that indicated they weren't Draugr. The two Draugr-like creatures lunged at me, one having a large shield in front of it and a heavy looking axe in its hand. The other one, which was larger, held a heavy warhammer. The axe-wielding one slashed at me, and I ducked under it, slashing at its stomach. My blade bounced off the shield as I sidestepped a heavy blow from the warhammer. The spectral skeleton lunged at me as well, sweeping its sword towards my stomach. The blade slashed through my light armor, tearing a shallow gash into my stomach. I felt a cold burning around the wound and gasped in pain. I ducked under a hammer blow, casting a powerful banishing spell which dispelled the spectral warrior. I stabbed the hammer-wielding creature in the stomach, and then headbutted it. While it was stunned, I ripped my sword free and decapitated it. I kicked it to the ground, turning to face its companion. I knocked aside its axe, snapping my foot into its knee. It staggered backwards, and I darted, in, pushing the shield away and driving my sword into its throat. I pulled my blade free, smashing its skull with the pommel of my sword. An ice spike pierced its throat as it fell. I turned, to see Serana standing in the doorway. I slid my sword into its scabbard, having in the fray noticed the room went no further in

"Anything in the other room?"

"Just one of those Draugr things," she said, "But they're not Draugr...Just similar. Here?"

"Not sure if there's any treasure but judging by the fact I fought two of these things and a skeletal ghost…"

I moved to the table, checking for treasure. There was a soul gem, and an elven dagger, and that was it. I took the gem, leaving the dagger behind.

"So that's it for the ruin?"

"As far as I can tell, yes," Serana said, "We should get moving though, find the mage."

I nodded, and we headed out, walking east.


	10. Chapter 10: Serana's Point of View

**An Prolonged Love**

 **Fandom: Elder Scrolls Series (Skyrim with DLCs)**

 **Author: CatandKaraForever**

 **Rating: T**

 **Genres: Romance, Adventure, Action, Fantasy**

 _ **Serana's Point of View:**_

The tower was decaying. There were numerous missing stones, it was covered in vines, and it was askew.

"This has to be the place," I told Allea, taking a step forward and preparing a warding spell to protect myself if the mage attacked us.

"Yes. It is. I sense his power. At the very least he was here once," she said.

"Leave this place," a loud and deep voice echoed through the canyon, "I would hate to have to turn you to ash!"

"We come in peace," Allea called, tapping into the Thu'um and increasing the volume of her words to guarantee the mage heard, "We come requesting your help!"

"Help? Why would I help you? Mortal intruders!"

"You were infected with the Shadow-Curse," my wife called, "Correct?"

"Yes...Millennia ago..How'd you know?"

"We were informed by a native," Allea said, "But that is not significant."  
"You're right. It's not. What IS significant is that today is the day you die!"

"I was infected too," Allea called, "We've heard you can..control your curse. Use it as a tool...rather than a disease."  
"You lie! I would sense a fellow Cursed one's presence near me."

"Let us come to you," Allea said, and I could see that she was becoming incorporeal again, "Or come to us!"

There was a puft of black energy and the mage appeared before us. He was transparent, with black shadows coming off of him. He had a long transparent black blade in each hand, and he stared at us.

"You..do not lie. This..is surprising. Come with me. Both of you," he said, turning away from us.

We walked inside the tower, which was completely intact on the inside. In fact, it was quite cozy. The floors were covered in bearskin rugs, there were large candelabras on the walls. He led us into a room with floor to ceiling bookshelves, filled with what I assumed were spell tomes. There were 2 large chairs, which he beckoned us to sit in.

"So," he said as he paced the study, "What brings you here? I'm assuming it has to do with your curse?"

"Aye," Allea said, "I was seeking to be able to control it, the way that you do."

"It's actually quite simple," he admitted, "For me at least."

"What do you do?"

"I clear my mind and then just think of being physically present, when I'm incorporeal and that makes me corporeal. To be incorporeal is just vice versa."

"How did you initially deal with the..stability?"

"What do you mean?"

"The involuntary changing from corporeal to incorporeal," she said.  
"Oh? That..I just needed to practice switching and over time I gradually started involuntarily switching less and less until not at all."

"How long did it take to master?"

"A couple of weeks," he said, "You should practice it."

"Practice? No offense," Allea said, "But practice is something that is obvious. I was hoping you could teach me to harness it."

"Aside from what I've told you I don't know how I can help you," he said, his face utterly lacking emotion.

Allea clenched her fist in anger, just as she become incorporeal again.

"Now go. You are wasting my time. I will not smite you down now, as we are..kin in our blessing. But if you waste much more of my time I will not hesitate."

"Please," she said, "Help me."

He snapped his fingers and we were blinded for a moment. When once more we could see, we were in the middle of a desert, nothing but sand to be seen in every direction.


	11. Chapter 11: Allea's Point of View

**A Prolonged Love**

 **Fandom: Elder Scrolls Series (Skyrim with DLCs)**

 **Author: CatandKaraForever**

 **Rating: T**

 **Genres: Romance, Adventure, Action, Fantasy**

 _ **Allea's Point of View:**_

I trudged through the sand, my legs weak. Serana groaned behind me, and I called back to her.

"We'll be out of this desert soon," I promised, even though I had no way of knowing if this was true.

We had been wandering through the sandy plains for days, not stumbling across any oasis for water, nor any wildlife at all. My throat was painfully dry, and about every five minutes I'd have a coughing fit and fall face-first into the sand. I heard a heavy thud behind me and turned to Serana. She was on her knees in the sand, looking defeated.

"I can't keep walking," she said grimly, "It's over. We're both going to die, lost in the desert, in the middle of nowhere, nobody will ever even know."

"No," I said, "It's not over. We're still alive, and we've gotta get out of this desert soon. We've covered a lot of ground. After all we've been through, we won't be defeated by heat, by dehydration. No. If we die we'll die in combat."

I limped to her, extending my arm to help her up. She took it, but then I too collapsed. She swore, pushing herself to her feet. She helped me up, but then we both collapsed, and I blacked out.

I groaned, blinking slowly. I opened my eyes, to see a blank wood ceiling. I tried to sit up, only to find I was tied to the bed. I turned my head to see Serana, also tied down, sleeping in a bed next to me.

"What?"

"Oh," I heard a voice say, "You're awake."

I looked to the source of the voice, to see an armored woman with a tattoo on her face and a steel cuirass. She had a blue cloak over her shoulder.

"Who are you? Why are we tied up?"

"I apologize for the restraints," the woman said, "I don't know you, and I've had some..difficulties with people. I'm not exactly the most trusting. As for who I am, I am Calia Sakaresh. Who are you?"

"Allea Stormblade, Dragonborn of Skyrim," I said, "And that's my wife, Serana."  
As I spoke I nodded my head in Serana's direction.

"Are you, THE Calia?"

"Depends on who you're referring to."

"Are you the Calia who fought with the Prophet Gauli?"

A look of sadness crossed her face, and she nodded sadly.

"Yes. Yes. She was my truest companion, the light of my life...I.."

"I'd give you my condolences, but from what I've heard..it's been a very long time and I don't know what it'd do."

"You are correct. It has been several hundred years."  
"Can you please remove our restraints?"

"I…Yes."

She pulled a dagger from her belt, slicing the ropes that held us to the bed. She slid it back into its sheath but kept her hand on the pommel of the longsword that hung on her hip. I stood up slowly, keeping my eyes on Calia in case she tried to surprise us.

"Where are we?"

"A cabin," she said, "on the Sun Coast."

I nodded, "I would have thought someone who fought to save the world would live in a more elaborate place than a simple cabin to be totally honest."

"Gauli...She never..She wasn't one for elaborate stuff. Her sword was always just three pieces of steel forged together. Her shield, a plate of wood. Things like that. She loved the simple stuff. After she died, and after everything she did, I felt like the best I could do was honor her legacy, and the easiest way I saw to do that was if I lived as simple as she did. I couldn't do it when it comes to the equipment I use, especially considering how lethal some enemies in this land truly are. But I can at least live in as simple a place."

I nodded, starting to understand the Endralean woman.

"How did you get us here?"

"Magic," she said, "That's all you need to know."

I sighed.

"What harm would it do to tell us?"

Calia sighed, rubbing her head.

"Fine. I have a ring. It allows me to summon a portal back to this cabin at will. I was returning from a trip to the ruins of Fogwatch, and I saw an unusual creature, not like anything I'd ever seen, even when I was traveling with Gauli. I gave chase, I wanted to see what it was. I stumbled, literally, upon the two of you. Shadowdancer tripped and fell, broke his legs, because I was trying to prevent us from trampling you. I cast a healing spell on his legs, and summoned a portal. I then carried each of you through the portal into my cabin and then rode in myself."

"Thank you," I told her, "We would have died without you."

She nodded.

"Yes. You would have. What brings you to Enderal? You're not Endralean."

"We're from Tamriel, specifically the province of Skyrim," Serana said, "We're the leaders of an exploratory mission bearing cartographers from all but one of the provinces."

Calia nodded.

"What do you know of Enderal?"

"Not much," I admitted, "We know you and Gauli fought to stop this thing called The Cycle from happening, that she gave her life protecting the world even though you couldn't stop it from claiming Enderal. We also know there was an invasion from another group that tore apart the Endralean military."

"That is a vast oversimplification," Calia said with a sigh, "But yes, that is correct. The Nehrimese military, lead by Josef Hayhurst, laid siege to Ark. With Gauli and I busy battling alongside the Holy Order in an attempt to stop the Cycle, we were unable to assist the Endralean military in their defense of Ark. Because of this, Enderal's military was defeated, however Hayhurst and the other Nehrimese perished when the Cycle hit."  
"How did you survive it?"

"Gauli..She had a vision. There was this beacon, and she knew she could sacrifice herself by destroying it, and the Cleansing, which is the magical blast that represents the end of the Cycle. So, when we were in Star City, which is an ancient Pyrean city, built in the sky, she knocked me out, tied me up. Left Alylyssa and Calista of the Order of Isoi there with me, to make sure I didn't make it down. We were watching from the city when the Cleansing occurred...We headed down after it happened, she saved me. I wouldn't let her sacrifice herself at least not without me there as well, if I'd been down with her then I would have stopped her, that or we would have died together, I'm not sure which."

The tale of the two sounded a lot like what I figured would happen if Serana and I were in the same situation.

"We've actually met Alylyssa and Calista," Serana said, "They're the ones that gave us our information."

"I see," Calia said, "Did they treat you well?"  
"I mean they could have treated us better when my curse kicked in but I don't blame them for getting aggressive."  
"What?"

I put my hand in the air and concentrated, willing it to turn incorporeal. After a moment it happened.

"What in Tyr's name?"

"It's called the Shadow-Curse," I explained, "I don't know if you've tangled with them, but there's..wraiths. They are incorporeal warriors who carry blades that give you the curse if they wound you with it. I was wounded by one, and they attacked us the first time I became incorporeal. I'm learning to control it though."

I willed my hand back into its normal form, half expecting Calia to attack.

"I see," she said, "And no, I have not encountered these wraiths you speak of."


End file.
